The makers of mobile communication devices, including those of cellular telephones, are increasingly adding functionality to their devices. While there is a trend toward the inclusion of more features and improvements for current features, there is also a trend toward smaller mobile communication devices. For example, cellular telephones include features such as still and video cameras, video streaming and two-way video calling, email functionality, Internet browsers, music players, FM radios with stereo audio, and organizers. As mobile communication device technology has continued to improve, the devices have become increasingly smaller. Therefore, there may less surface area for placement of user interface (UI) components, such as standard keypads, as manufacturers continue to add features and reduce their products' size.
In a small wearable mobile communication device, such as a headset or an earmounted cellular telephone, manufacturers may use speech recognition for the primary UI to conserve surface area. However, a speech recognition UI may not be practical when there is substantial ambient noise or when the user prefers privacy. Therefore, it may be beneficial to supplement a speech recognition UI with a keypad. As mentioned, however, there may be limited surface area for a standard keypad.